Text of Bush Middle East Speech

During the course of one week, the situation in the Middle
East has deteriorated dramatically. Last Wednesday, my special
envoy, Anthony Zinni, reported to me that we were on the verge
of a cease-fire agreement that would have spared Palestinian
and Israeli lives. That hope fell away when a terrorist
attacked a group of innocent people at a Netanya hotel, killing
many men and women in what is a mounting toll of terror.

In the days since, the world has watched with growing
concern the horror of bombings and burials and the stark
picture of tanks in the street. Across the world, people are
grieving for Israelis and Palestinians who have lost their
lives.

When an 18-year-old Palestinian girl is induced to blow
herself up, and in the process kills a 17-year-old Israeli
girl, the future itself is dying, the future of the Palestinian
people and the future of the Israeli people.

We mourn the dead, and we mourn the damage done to the hope
of peace, the hope of Israeli's and the Israelis' desire for a
Jewish state at peace with its neighbors, the hope of the
Palestinian people to build their own independence state.
Terror must be stopped. No nation can negotiate with
terrorists, for there is no way to make peace with those whose
only goal is death.

This could be a hopeful moment in the Middle East. The
proposal of Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, supported by
the Arab League, has put a number of countries in the Arab
world closer than ever to recognizing Israel's right to exist.

The United States is on record supporting the legitimate
aspirations of the Palestinian people for a Palestinian state.
Israel has recognized the goal of a Palestinian state.

The outlines of a just settlement are clear: two states,
Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and
security. This can be a time for hope, but it calls for
leadership, not for terror.

Since September 11 I've delivered this message: Everyone
must choose. You're either with the civilized world or you're
with the terrorists. All in the Middle East also must choose
and must move decisively in word and deed against terrorist
acts.

The chairman of the Palestinian Authority has not
consistently opposed or confronted terrorists.

At Oslo and elsewhere, Chairman Arafat renounced terror as
an instrument of his cause, and he agreed to control it. He's
not done so.

The situation in which he finds himself today is largely of
his own making. He's missed his opportunities and thereby
betrayed the hopes of the people he's supposed to lead.

Given his failure, the Israel government feels it must
strike at terrorist networks that are killing its citizens.
Yet, Israel must understand that its response to these recent
attacks is only a temporary measure. All parties have their own
responsibilities, and all parties owe it to their own people to
act.

We all know today's situation runs the risk of aggravating
long- term bitterness and undermining relationships that are
critical to any hope of peace.

I call on the Palestinian people and the Palestinian
Authority and our friends in the Arab world to join us in
delivering a clear message to terrorists: Blowing yourself up
does not help the Palestinian cause. To the contrary,
suicide-bombing missions could well blow up the best and only
hope for a Palestinian state.

All states must keep their promise, made in a vote in the
United Nations, to actively oppose terror in all its forms. No
nation can pick and choose its terrorist friends.

I call on the Palestinian Authority and all governments in
the region to do everything in their power to stop terrorist
activities, to disrupt terrorist financing, and to stop
inciting violence by glorifying terror in state-owned media or
telling suicide bombers they are martyrs.

They're not martyrs. They're murderers. And they undermine
the cause of the Palestinian people.

Those governments, like Iraq, that reward parents for the
sacrifice of their children are guilty of soliciting murder of
the worst kind.

All who care about the Palestinian people should join in
condemning and acting against groups like Al-Aqsa, Hezbollah,
Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and all groups which oppose the peace
process and seek the destruction of Israel.

The recent Arab League support of Crown Prince Abdullah's
initiative for peace is promising, is hopeful because it
acknowledges Israel's right to exist. And it raises the hope of
sustained, constructive Arab involvement in the search for
peace.

This builds on a tradition of visionary leadership begun by
President Sadat and King Hussein and carried forward by
President Mubarak and King Abdullah. Now other Arab states must
rise to this occasion and accept Israel as a nation and as a
neighbor.

Peace with Israel is the only avenue to prosperity and
success for a new Palestinian state. The Palestinian people
deserve peace and an opportunity to better their lives.

They need their closest neighbor, Israel, to be an economic
partner, not a mortal enemy. They deserve a government that
respects human rights and a government that focuses on their
needs, education and health care, rather than feeding their
resentments.

It is not enough for Arab nations to defend the Palestinian
cause. They must truly help the Palestinian people by seeking
peace and fighting terror and promoting development.

Israel faces hard choices of its own. Its government has
supported the creation of a Palestinian state that is not a
haven for terrorism. Yet, Israel also must recognize that such
a state needs to be politically and economically viable.

Consistent with the Mitchell plan, Israeli settlement
activity in occupied territories must stop, and the occupation
must end through withdrawal to secure and recognize boundaries
consistent with United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338.
Ultimately, this approach should be the basis of agreements
between Israel and Syria and Israel and Lebanon.

Israel should also show a respect — a respect for and
concern about the dignity of the Palestinian people who are and
will be their neighbors. It is crucial to distinguish between
the terrorists and ordinary Palestinians seeking to provide for
their own families. The Israeli government should be
compassionate at checkpoints and border crossings, sparing
innocent Palestinians daily humiliation.

Israel should take immediate action to ease closures and
allow peaceful people to go back to work.

Israel is facing a terrible and serious challenge. For
seven days, it has acted to rout out terrorists' nests. America
recognizes Israel's right to defend itself from terror.

Yet, to lay the foundations of future peace, I ask Israel
to halt incursions into Palestinian-controlled areas and begin
the withdrawal from those cities it has recently occupied.
I speak as a committed friend of Israel. I speak out of a
concern for its long-term security, the security that will come
with a genuine peace.

As Israel steps back, responsible Palestinian leaders and
Israel's Arab neighbors must step forward and show the world
that they are truly on the side of peace. The choice and the
burden will be theirs.

The world expects an immediate cease-fire, immediate
resumption of security cooperation with Israel against
terrorism, and an immediate order to crack down on terrorist
networks. I expect better leadership, and I expect results.

These are the elements of peace in the Middle East, and now
we must build the road to those goals. Decades of bitter
experience teach a clear lesson: Progress is impossible when
nations emphasize their grievances and ignore their
opportunities. The storms of violence cannot go on. Enough is
enough.

And to those who would try to use the current crisis as an
opportunity to widen the conflict, stay out. Iran's arms
shipments and support for terror fuel the fire of conflict in
the Middle East, and it must stop. Syria has spoken out against
al Qaeda. We expect it to act against Hamas and Hezbollah, as
well.

It's time for Iran to focus on meeting its own people's
aspirations for freedom and for Syria to decide which side of
the war against terror it is on.

The world finds itself at a critical moment. This is a
conflict that can widen or an opportunity we can seize.

And so, I've decided to send Secretary of State Powell to
the region next week, to seek broad international support for
the vision I've outlined today.

As a step in this process, he will work to implement United
Nations Resolution 1402 — an immediate and meaningful
cease-fire, an end to terror and violence and incitement;
withdrawal of Israel troops from Palestinian cities, including
Ramallah; implementation of the already agreed-upon Tenet and
Mitchell plans, which will lead to a political settlement.

I have no illusions — we have no illusions — about the
difficulty of the issues that lay ahead. Yet our nation's
resolve is strong. America is committed to ending this conflict
and beginning an era of peace.

We know this is possible, because in our lifetimes, we have
seen an end to conflicts that no one thought could end. We've
seen fierce enemies let go of long histories of strife and
anger. America itself counts former adversaries as trusted
friends — Germany and Japan and now Russia.

Conflict is not inevitable. Distrust need not be permanent.
Peace is possible when we break free of old patterns and habits
of hatred.

The violence and grief that trouble the holy land have been
among the great tragedies of our time. The Middle East has
often been left behind in the political and economic
advancement of the world. That is the history of the region,
but it need not — and must not — be its fate.

The Middle East could write a new story of trade and
development and democracy. And we stand ready to help.

Yet this progress can only come in an atmosphere of peace.
And the United States will work for all the children of Abraham
to know the benefits of peace.